Assessing the Disparities in Pressure Injury Prevention Knowledge and Practices Among Critical Care Unit Nurses in Government and Private Hospitals in Madinah City, Saudi Arabia

Objective: To examine the level of knowledge and practice regarding pressure injury prevention in the critical care units of nurses working in Medina City, Saudi Arabia.Material and Methods: A cross-sectional quantitative study design was applied. A total of 598 staff nurses working in King Fahad Hospital and the Saudi German Hospital, Madina, completed the questionnaires. Data were collected using the pressure injury prevention knowledge questionnaire and the pressure injury prevention practices questionnaire. Statistical analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics, Chi-square, independent sample t-test, and multiple linear regression inferential analysis of IBM SPSS version 27. Results: Nurses’ total knowledge of pressure ulcer prevention was moderate (17.31±2.86), within the possible score of 22 points. The mean practices of pressure injury prevention among the nurses were reported at 56.64 (S.D.=3.095). The study was found to be clinically significant, but there were no statistically significant differences in the mean pressure injury knowledge scores between those working in private hospitals and those in the public hospitals (17.41±2.82 and 17.26±2.88, respectively, t=0.631, df=596, p-value=0.528). However, the pressure injury practices among nurses in private hospitals were significantly better (p-value=0.004) than those from governmental hospitals (57.17±2.718 vs 56.39±3.234, respectively). Knowledge and practices of pressure injury prevention in government and private hospitals varied according to many factors, including age, duration of employment, formal training, marital status, and level of education (p-value<0.05).Conclusion: Nurses in private hospitals showed clinically significantly better preventive practices, spotlighting quality of care differences.